New Jersey added 1,000 jobs in September, helping the unemployment rate stay steady at 4.2 percent, the state Department of Labor and Workforce Development said Thursday.

The report marked the fifth consecutive month of job growth in the state, tipping the employment seesaw in the direction of workers, who should have an easier time finding a job.

"The business is doing good, but it’s a tough market for employers," said Larry Fisher, owner of Eagle Specialty Coffee in Eatontown, which is searching for a dependable barista. "It's very easy for somebody to get a job. You can drive down the street and see hiring signs everywhere."

The monthly jobs report surveys employers to measure the number of jobs and households to measure the unemployment rate.

Gov. Phil Murphy recently announced a long-term plan to foster smaller, innovative companies and jump-start job growth. But the state after spending most of the decade in the doldrums, appears to now be holding its own.

Many employers in New Jersey are looking for workers.(Photo: Gwengoat, Getty Images/iStockphoto)

New Jersey added 58,000 jobs from September 2017 to September 2018, the Labor Department said, and the jobless rate has fallen from 4.7 percent to 4.2 percent during that time.

"The state's economy is progressing, I’d say pretty steadily," said Christopher Velarides, who follows the New Jersey economy for Moody's Analytics. "Job growth has by and large been on par with the U.S. probably since 2016."

New Jersey, he said, has been aided by Amazon's new warehouses and Atlantic City's two new casinos.

But other sectors are chipping in. The state's office real estate market, for example, leased 1.8 million square feet in the third quarter, one of its strongest quarters since 2012, according to CBRE, a real estate firm.